Former councillor calls for action over Lindley home which has been empty for two decades: What do you think?

A POLITICIAN has called for Kirklees Council to deal with a home which has been empty for nearly 20 years.

The house, on East Street in Lindley, has not been occupied for more than 18 years.

The council took out an Empty Dwelling Management Order against the house in 2008 in an attempt to bring it back into use.

Tony Woodhead, former Lib Dem councillor for Lindley, this week demanded that Kirklees do something with the house.

“The council still hasn’t taken any action. It has been dragging its feet since 2008,” he said.

“Kirklees seems to have a policy of engaging with the owner. Sometimes you’ve got to use the stick and not the carrot.”

A council spokeswoman said yesterday that the vacant home was not causing problems in the area.

“The owner has ensured the property is safe and secure but – despite a detailed investigation by the council – there is little evidence that this house is problematic and there have been no reported incidents to the police, fire service or Anti-Social Behaviour Unit,” she said.

“A Neighbourhood Management Group meeting in May this year discussed the reasons why the elderly owner of the property preferred it to lie empty and the two ward councillors present decided to accept the officer recommendation not to apply for an order as it was unlikely to be granted at this time.”